Wednesday, 24 February 2016

OMRON Healthcare introduces low cost doctor-led hypertension care

Omron Healthcare EMEA weekend, launched, a Pilot project for Omron Medical Connect, a service that enables patients to receive remote consultation and prescriptions for hypertension from cardiologists at Lagos University Teaching Hospital directly at their community pharmacy.

Omron Medical Connect aims to provide patients with hypertension care in pharmacies close to their homes, reducing cost, travel time and time waiting for appointments.

Omron Healthcare EMEA will recruit 500 patients to the Omron Medical Connect Pilot to demonstrate feasibility and effectiveness of this innovative healthcare delivery model. The Pilot will take place from February to October 2016 in Lagos and surrounding areas.

Omron Healthcare EMEA has a global reputation for producing highly accurate blood pressure devices. However Omron’s mission is to go beyond tracking numbers to provide services that enable patients to take control of their health and live longer, healthier lives. Omron is working towards a world with zero occurrences of heart attacks, strokes or other cardiovascular related events. We call this ‘Towards Zero Events’. Partnering with health care providers enables Omron to support patients in gaining more insight into their health, receive advice and guidance and ultimately increase the number of years of healthy life lived for people around the globe.

Paul Stevens, Group Manager for Omron Healthcare EMEA explained the opportunity addressed by Omron Medical Connect: ‘Managing chronic illnesses such as hypertension effectively will be a critical challenge for Nigeria’s Healthcare system in the coming decades. By reducing the burden of chronic disease management on hospitals, while providing a platform for patients to receive high quality care at low cost, we believe that Omron Medical Connect can transform the way that people receive healthcare, and eventually increase affordability and accessibility for millions of patients’.

High blood pressure is the number one risk factor for Cardiovascular Disease (CVD) and associated deaths in Sub Saharan Africa14.Blood pressure lowering significantly reduces CVD risk but often requires lifelong treatment17. However, antihypertensive treatment coverage in Sub Saharan Africa is very low, mainly due to low awareness of hypertension and poor access to quality care. Even in settings were hypertension care is available, accessibility for patients is often poor because of high costs of care (fees for healthcare), high travel costs or long waiting times at the clinics, leading to loss of income and low patient satisfaction.

Omron Medical Connect will leverage Community Pharmacies as the patient’s main point of care where blood pressure will be measured, the patient will be counselled on lifestyle measures and drug use, and drugs will be dispensed. Blood pressure will be monitored by a doctor via digital data transfer through a ‘health cloud,’ doctors are then able to electronically renew prescriptions based on the blood pressure measurements performed at the pharmacy. Doctors from Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH) will provide the remote monitoring service and this hospital will serve as the referral site for patients with an indication for usual physician-based care.

Pharmacy based care can have a significant positive impact on communities and families. Good blood pressure control leads to longer, healthier lives. Improved accessibility to carewill cut travel cost and time away from home, giving patientsmore time to spend with family, and more time to work and contribute positively to society.

Omron Healthcare EMEA will sponsor 10 community blood pressure screening events, targeting 5000 people, in collaboration with Lagos University Teaching Hospital in order to raise awareness of the issue of hypertension and to identify patients suitable for pharmacy-based hypertension care via Omron Medical Connect.

In order to confirm the benefits of Omron Medical Connect, an independent clinical observation study will measure the outcomes of the pilot, measuring patient retention in the Pilot, the impact on medication adherence and patient blood pressure, plus the cost of care to the patients and healthcare providers.

Omron Healthcare EMEA is a leading manufacturer and distributor of healthcare products. Omron’s market-leading products include home blood pressure monitors and respiratory nebulizers.

Mrs. Chioma Adanma Umeha is a journalist of over two decades experience. At the moment, she is the Health Editor of Newswatch Times, Lagos, Nigeria.
A graduate of Mass Communications from Anambra State University, Enugu, she also holds a Masters Degree in International Relations and Strategic Studies from the Lagos State University, Ojo, Lagos.

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About Me

Mrs. Chioma Adanma Umeha is a journalist of over two decades experience. At the moment, she is the Health Editor of Newswatch Times, Lagos, Nigeria.
A graduate of Mass Communications from Anambra State University, Enugu, she also holds a Masters Degree in International Relations and Strategic Studies from the Lagos State University, Ojo, Lagos.